“Dont’ worry.
About a thing.
‘Cuz every little thing gonna be alright”- Bob Marley
Thanks to fantastic pitching performance from Jon Lester (and by the way, Roy Halladay, not Johan Santana, is the premier starting pitcher in baseball today) the Olde Towne Team ended their 5 game losing streak last night. Being on the west coast, it’s difficult to tell how worried the folks back in Boston were about losing 5 in a row, including a sweep at the hanks of Tampa Bay, but my spidey sense tells me there were more than a few concerned people dialing up WEEI and venting some frustrations.
But I’m hear to say that we shouldn’t be worred about what’s been going on. I’m not even going to zero in on the minor injuries that are piling up. Nor am I going to focus on the flu bug that was passed around the clubhouse. By the way fellas, the Mitchell investigation could care less if you’re loading up on Thera Flu so have at it.
If you haven’t figure it out yet, pitching is the centerpiece of championship teams. Over the course of the year, hitting has its ups and downs. Sometimes, the lineup will be hot. Sometimes, it won’t be. Consistent starting pitching is the element that carries teams through the ups and downs a lineup goes through during the course of a 162 game season.
That said, there was a lot to like in our starting pitching during the last week. Especially in the young arms.
Justin Masterson makes his first major league start…gives up only 2 hits in 6 excellent innings.
Clay Bucholz pitches a gem against Tampa Bay…8 innings, 9 K;s.
Josh Beckett strikes out 13 in a 7 inning, 107pitch outing on Sunday.
And last night, Jon Lester may have pitched the best game of his life. Keeping the sox in the game by dueling with Halladay. One hit in eight innings.
The sox may have lost 5 in a row. They may only be tied for first place, but look at what the young pitchers are showing us. The yankees would kill for similar performances from Hughes and Kennedy.
Is anyone even wondering when Curt Schilling is coming back? Do we even care?
